The Department of Communications` (DOC`s) mid-year performance status shows all its projects are a work in progress, with tight timelines to meet objectives such as the 2010 Soccer World Cup guarantees.
This is according to the Adjusted Estimates of National Expenditure (AENE) released by the Department of Finance yesterday, during finance minister Trevor Manuel`s mini-budget speech.
Government`s financial year runs from March until April and the AENE deals with the first half of the year that ends in September.
Sentech`s homework
The list shows national signal distributor Sentech has connected none of the 250 "Dinaledi" schools - those schools that have a special emphasis on teaching maths and science.
However, the AENE says Sentech has finalised the network design and approximately 90% of the geographical information system data sets have been purchased and a technical working group had been established.
Some 50% of the population is due to be covered by Sentech`s new digital transmitters as part of the country`s migration to digital terrestrial TV by the end of the current financial year in March. According to the AENE, no transmitters are currently operating, with 13% of the transmitters expected to be operating by November and 40% by March.
The DOC has appointed a service provider to complete two corporate governance reports - one each on Sentech and the South African Broadcasting Corporation. These are expected to be completed by the end of November.
Soccer`s last mile
Manuel said in his speech that R600 million had been allocated for the "last mile" access network between 2010 Fifa World Cup stadium venues and the Telkom national network.
"In total, 10 stadiums have to be connected by July 2010 and four have to be linked for the Confederations Cup in 2009," says Telkom spokesperson Pynee Chetty.
He says the 2010 World Cup connectivity requirements are that cables must have a capacity of 20Gbps and this means redundancy cables must have the same capacity.
"Part of the redundancy plan is to have two fibre-optic cables running into and out of the stadiums, plus a point-to-point wireless network."
Chetty notes that the R600 million is to meet all of government`s guarantees in terms of the 2010 World Cup. This includes the second Sentech satellite station, the upgrading of Telkom`s SAT-3 west African submarine cable system, and the design and equipping of the international broadcasting centre that will be located in Johannesburg.
The DOC has met none of the World Summit on Information Society targets that were set two years ago, although these targets are only due to be completed in full by 2015.
The mid-year report says the DOC was supposed to have "a percentage of operational submarine cable of 25%" for the current financial year.
Submarine interest
The AENA goes on to state that Uhurunet had been extended to become a submarine cable system that encircles the African continent. It says an agreement had been signed with Uhurunet`s operating company, Baharicom, and government`s broadband supplier, Infraco, to build a west African cable.
It also says Vodacom, MTN, Telkom and Sentech have "expressed interest in participating in Uhurunet". The Baharicom Development Company will construct, maintain, own, operate and manage the Uhurunet System. However, the AENA does not detail any funding specifically for this submarine cable system.
The SA Post Office has only rolled out seven of the total of 85 new post offices that will be used to promote universal service and access. Seventeen post offices out of 81 have been refurbished to meet this objective.